Macaron (Italian meringue method trial)

After some trial and error from making macarons (I tried the French method for about 3 times, with poor results in the end), I thought it was much easier to simply buy them from the shops. However the problem is that they are not always fresh and not worth the exorbitant price. Last time I had one, the outside was too crunchy and not chewy in the inside- definitely a very pleasant tasting .
Now, I decided to give it another shot using the Italian meringue method. Since I have a digital thermometer, it can easily be done. It's quite fun to measure the temperature so accurately. This method is said to give the egg whites more stability and there is less risk of over-mixing/ over beating. So after 'googling' what I was looking for, I stumbled across this blog post which carefully goes through the whole process. After analysing the recipe, I finally decided to give it a try and oh I'm glad I did. The macarons turned out perfect, except for the one I piped onto the macaron sheet which got a little bit stuck. Apart from that, I cannot expressed how pleased I was to see the macaron rise. They were shiny and had feet.
Since I was just testing this method, I didn't add any colouring in case it might disturb the mix, but I shall next time. I did a matcha buttercream as filling, didn't put as much as I mentioned, it was a trial only. I very much enjoyed eating it though.
As a side note, I must warn that you end up with some massive dish-washing  and cleaning afterwards. Ok, well not that much if you clean as you go. There are lot of waiting intervals anyway which allow you to get other stuff done. It is quite time-consuming to make, but when you see the results, it is worth the time and effort. I can't wait to play around and try some different flavours.
I'll simply leave some photos for now to show what I am talking about. Pictures speak for themselves,  don't they?